Protesters halt N.Z.I. meeting

Press, 16 August 1980, Page 6

Protesters halt N.Z.I. meeting

PA Auckland Chants of “Racist, racist” and whistling demonstrators forced the closing yesterday after only 20 minutes of the annual meeting in Auckland of the New Zealand Insurance Company.

A continued barrage ofj chanting and interjections l from a group of about 50j anti-apartheid demonstrators; c.owned out the brief pro-' ceedings. ? • ' The N.Z.I. chairman, Mr| F. R. A. Hellaby, first tried; to talk above the noise, then attempted to placate the demonstators with a statement on the' company’s “position on South Africa,” but finally was forced to ‘ dissolve the meeting. < Unlike last year’s extraordinary meeting of the company, there was no violence, and tempers remained calm. • As - the 300 shareholders arrived, at Trillos yesterday afternoon there was no real indication of the storm. Handbags were checked as people entered the hall, and detectives and uniformed policemen were deployed round the hall and foyer arda. At the start of the meeting, the secretary . of the Insurance Companies Cam-, paign, ; Mr J. B. Minto, demanded an. immediate twoway discussion with the company’s directors on the issue of N.Z.I. investment in South; Africa, that the company hold discussions on the question with five, named black groups in South Africa,' and that the company express to the South African Government its abhorrence of apartheid. i .'“Before the business ofj this meeting is '. transacted we want those three conditions met,” said.Mr Minto. Mr Hellaby, 'who had remained standing throughout. Mr Minto’s, address, said, “It is my'intention to make 'a. statement on this, and I'can; assure v you the directors may take part in the dis-1 cussion.

I “Will you just wait two I minutes while we get the formalities of this meeting j out of the way?” .. I Whistles, and chants of '“Out,” and “South Africa” I made a loud barrage as the I company’s secretary (Mr R, ;G. Milligan) read the auditors’ report.. As Mr Hellaby began his South- African report, he warned demonstrators he would.be forced to close the meeting if the noise did not stop. Points Mr Hellaby was able to make from his statement on South Africa, prepared since he made a visit to the republic earlier this year and supplementing an earlier statement on that trip posted to all shareholders, included: — N.Z.I. received no dividend from South Africa in 1976, 1977,' and 1978, but last year it received $161,204 and this year, $241,443. — There were no legal obstacles to N.Z.l.’s withdrawing from South Africa, ’ but an application to remit funds would be unlikely to receive approval from the South African Reserve Bank. Withdrawal of funds in “financial rands,” Which discounted against the normal rand, would lose N.Z.I. 370 rand in every 1000. Mr Hellaby also had planned to discuss operations in Zimbabwe, but was not able to. Briefly, he would have announced that these operations, were being continued as a branch directed from New -Zealand .instead of from South Africa.

Elsewhere (in a copy given to reporters) Mr Hellaby said the record 1979-80 profit of $13.6 million covered a deteriorating underwriting position the company was taking all steps to reverse.

He also said, referring to! the recommended one-for-! four bonus share issue and increased final dividend of 10c (10 per cent) that it was hoped to pay the next interim from tax-free sources. There. was every reasonable expectation that this policy could be continued for a further two’years. — The company deplored apartheid, but was concerned about the future of its South African staff if it were to withdraw. Of the 250 staff there, one in four was black, Coloured, or Asian. All staff, irrespective of colour, enjoyed the same N.Z.I. conditions, benefits, and opportunities. The non-whites would be the most vulnerable in a withdrawal.

. After \ the meeting, Mr Minto said that if the directors had not agreed to the full discussion on the investment issue, the demonstrators had hoped to force a closing of the meeting. He said his group had been making its demands since 1973, and the position had not changed to any degree. N.Z.I. had not met. any of the groups in South Africa which demonstrators had named. He alleged that the black trade unionist Mr Hellaby had met was in favour of foreign investment in South Africa.

Mr Minto said -his group would increase its call, for a boycott of N.Z.I.- It would ask people not to do business with the ecompany while it continued its operations in South Africa. It is believed the directors discussed the procedure of completing the unfinished business by mail, including approval of the recommended dividend and bonus issue, i